7 long years have passed since the magnificent Grave Disorder but The Damned have gigged constantly since then becoming more and more cohesive as they do so. Finally a new album. The single Little Miss Disaster (included here) from 2006 was a hint of what was to come and a tantalising taster. So, Who's Paranoid sees The Damned building upon the sound and styles of Grave Disorder whilst moving on to experiment with yet new areas. Opening track A Nation Fit For Heroes sounds almost like prime Stranglers. From there on it's a journey into a myriad of different styles encompassing music hall sing-a-long(?) (Dr Woofenstein), pop-rock (Diamonds, Little Miss Disaster, Just Hanging,), ballads (Since I Met You), punk / rock of course ( Danger To Yourself, Maid For Pleasure, Perfect Sunday, Nothing), gothic ballads (Nature's Dark Passion) and wig-out psychedelia (Dark Asteroid). The standout is the magnificent Perfect Sunday which has a guitar lick any self-respecting rock band would kill for! The real surprise, however, comes in the form of the 14 minute Dark Asteroid. This is not the first time that The Damned have played around with this particular genre (check out 1980's Curtain Call) but this is the first time that Captain and Monty have really let their imagination run riot! So, Who's Paranoid is a magnificent album, great songs, brilliantly played and with faultless production. Everybody should own a copy just to see how it should be done. Genius!
